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52
Monks' Dilemma
importance of householders who toil hard to make all arrangements of food, clothing and shelter etc for the monks who do nothing and enjoy at the cost of the householders. The Acharya would be silent and not answer the questions posed by me and only exhort me to follow his instructions as ordained in the scriptures. In my heart of heart I long for what you have proposed. There is only one hitch. The Acharya will not permit and the community will be up in arms against me and will harass and defame me. She opened her mind to Deepti and asked her for the way out."
Deepti, "You leave everything to me. If you have resolved then no power on earth can prevent it. I shall secure permission from the Acharya and even if he does not agree I shall manage it with the police help. Tomorrow we shall fly to Bangalore and there I assure you that nobody will be able to do any harm to you."
They went straight to meet the Acharya. Deepti spoke plainly and boldly, "Shradha has decided to renounce her status as a nun and revert back as a householder. She has also decided to marry and undo the injustice done to her by herself, the community and by the institution that made her a nun. Kindly permit her or we shall seek police help."
The Acharya had no option but to agree. Deepti was very happy. She won a formidable battle against entrenched social and pseudo spiritual order. The three, Deepak and his lovable sister now Shree flew back to Bangalore.
Monks' Dilemma
53 Deepti, "I want to live with you in your brother's flat if he permits. I requested him before he got the flat, but he refused."
Shree, "I shall manage it. Now leave it to me."
Deepak, "I have no objection now, rather I shall be grateful to you if you give company to my sister and help her face the new situation. We three shall work together to help her settle and stand on her own feet and be independent. We shall first find a suitable job for her and then a good matching bridegroom."
Shree blushed and went away on the pretext of going to the toilet.
In just a couple of days Shree and Deepti became good friends, reciprocating and complementing mutually. Shree was very proficient in cooking, stitching and housekeeping that she had learnt from her mother early in her teens. Deepti picked up many of her skills and in turn taught Shree computer operations viz. E-mail, Internet etc. She also started studying philosophy and religion with her help and reading the books Shree had brought with her. They talked for hours, sharing each other's views, feelings, aspirations and plans. Deepti often opened web sites of various marriage bureaus and coerce Shree to select a suitable match.
Shree, "Match for you?
Deepti, "I have already searched and finalised. I mean it for you."
Shree knew but pretended ignorance and asked, "Who is your choice?"
On the way from airport to the city Shree requested Deepti, "Please promise that you will stay with me at least for a month or so till I get acclimatised to life."
